Music Box
by TheEvilBunny
Summary: She smiled when she had read what was written on the lock: My Princess.It had been a long time since she had heard that, and she had heard it from only one person a “friend” that she had lost along the way.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:** Hi!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Teen Titans.

Raven closed her book, caressing its spine before she stood to return it to the bookshelf on the corner. For five continuous days, she didn't let go of the book (including the times when she had fallen asleep reading it) burying herself deeper and deeper in to the new spells that she was determined to learn. Her eyes felt weary from reading, and she felt like, instead of walking, she was dragging her feet. Her fingers were threatening to give in on carrying the thick book by one hand only. She quickly supported the book with her free hand, lifting it to reach the empty space in the bookshelf.

She pushed the two books away to make enough space for the book that was to be added to her collection, but something had stopped her from pushing it wide enough to fit the book. She let go of the heavy hardbound book, placing it on the floor right beside her. She felt around at the side of the shelf, pulling away a dusty book that faced front, and leaned on something from inside.

There, lost behind various spellbooks was a small mahogany box, covered in dust.

She quickly pulled it and inspected it on her bed.

Her eyes began to get heavy, but she shook her head to wake herself up.

She rested her head on her hand as her chest lay on the bed. She stared at the small box, unbelieving that through the years; it had still been there.

The small mahogany box was decorated with four amethyst gems that shone from the four corners of the cover of the box. It stood on four legs, which was ebony black in color. Her fingers brushed away some dust when her hand stroked the bronze lock, which had writing embedded on it with thin, curvy lettering.

She smiled when she had read what was written on the lock: My Princess.

It had been a long time since she had heard that, and she had heard it from only one person; a "friend" that she had lost along the way.

She shut out the memory, closing her eyes, though still not wanting to fall asleep in the process. She pushed a stray strand of hair away from her face when she leaned over again to unlock the box.

She blew away some dust before clicking open the bronze lock.

She lifted the lid, and it stopped when it was opened exactly perpendicular to the rim of the bottom part. Gold chains at the sides of the small box connected the bottom form the lid, and stopped the cover from opening completely.

On the cover was a wide spread mirror that stretched through the rectangle frame. She could see her reflection, and she was glad that no one could see her like this now. Her eyes were weary, and she looked even paler than she was before. Her lips looked dry and chapped, and her cheeks, drained out of color. Dark rings encircled her eyes.

Her eyes traveled to the inside of the box. It was covered with red velvet and separated into half by a divider, also covered in red velvet.

On the right, jewelry, crumpled pieces of paper, and small trinkets were placed in a somewhat messy yet organized way.

On the left, a stage-like glass rested an inch away from the rim, decorated with curves and loops in silver lining. There, stood a miniature of a girl and a boy dancing.

She felt around at the bottom of the box. She came across a small silver winder on the bottom. She turned it a few times and music played. She recognized it immediately as The Lark by Glinka.

In its high, harp-like tune, the music filled the air. The miniature of the dancers twirled and circled the stage.

She felt the tears sting her eyes when she saw how gracefully they moved around, like a royal prince and princess in a ball. Oh, how she longed for the same to happen to her.

Ever since she was a kid, her mother had given her books filled with fairy tales. Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Snow White…princesses with their happy endings. She could still remember that moment in her life when she had thought she had finally found her prince. He was her best friend, one of the few people who she thought had really wanted to be friends with her. But that was it, wasn't it? Friends…just friends. That wasn't what she had wanted. She wanted something more…she wanted something that she really couldn't have.

000

_FLASHBACK_

"_Merry Christmas, Princess Raven," he had often called her that, since the "end of the world" incident, wherein her father seemed to have ruled the entire world, which he did. He smirked whenever he said it, as if mocking her, but not tonight. It actually looked like he meant it. He held out a small box covered in red with a green ribbon neatly tied around it, his colors…Christmas colors. _

_The dark demon took her gift from under the tree, then held it out for him. The others had already opened their gifts. Beastboy was sneaking into Cyborg's room, trying to begin to play that new video game Robin had given him; Cyborg was in the garage, was installing the car accessories that Raven gave him; and Starfire was in her room, arranging the hair ornaments that everyone had given her. Only Robin and Raven were left to give their gifts._

"_Merry Christmas, Robin," _

_They exchanged their gifts and Robin began to open his. Same as always, he didn't want to ruin the wrapping. He knew it was something the other took time doing. _

_Robin smiled when he had seen what his best friend had given him. It was a hardbound book, and on the side was the title, in blue lettering. The Supernaturalist by Eoin Colfer, she knew him very well to know his favorite author, and the book he had wanted to buy for some time, but didn't have the time to do so._

"_Thank you…" _

_Raven couldn't take her eyes away from the expression on his face. He looked speechless, something that rarely happened. The smile that rested on his lips was a different kind of smile. Not the smile that he would give you if you made him happy, but a devious smile that showed that he was controlling himself from hopping around and singing a song, and rejoicing for getting the book he had wanted for so long._

"_I've seen you eyeing that book for some time now, since we had caught Control Freak in the mall that other time."_

"_Wow, Rae…thanks a lot. You really know me that well don't you?" _

"_You know me more than anybody, it's just right that I know as much about you as you know me."_

_Robin opened his mouth to speak, but could not find the words to say. The smile was still on his lips._

_Raven opened her gift, also careful not to ruin the wrapping. _

_She could see that Robin eyed her, and observed her every move._

_In her hands, she held a small music box. She opened it, and then turned the winder at the bottom. _

"_Robin…it's…beautiful…"_

_He studied her expression carefully, unknowing if she was happy or she was disappointed. She rarely showed expressions that no one could know what she was feeling or thinking._

"_Thank you," she said._

_Robin looked crestfallen. He didn't know if he should just walk away, or ask what she thought about the gift._

_Raven could see the troubled expression on his face. _

"_I love it," she said monotonously, although she really did love it. It was the best gift anyone had given her. Ever._

_Robin nodded, but still waited for her to say something more. _

"_I…um…gotta go help Star. She's probably having trouble, you know…um…doing things, again."_

_Raven bit her lip._

"_Do you like her?" _

_Robin stopped in his tracks. He turned around to make sure he had heard it right._

"_Do you like her? Starfire?" _

_He nodded. "Yeah…I like her…"_

"_Okay," Raven didn't show her disappointed expression._

"_But…" Robin looked down. "…What about you?"_

_Raven's head snapped up. What about her? She deciphered the words he had said, if you listen to it, it sounded like he cared about her. Her heart beat faster, waiting for what he was going to say next. She had waited so long for the time he would come to his senses and realize that she was just standing right in front of him. The sides of her lips twitched at the thought that this may probably the night he would tell her what he really felt._

"_Is it okay? I mean, me and her?"_

"_Oh," she stared at her feet; her pale cheeks grew hotter. How stupid of her to think that Robin, the boy wonder, would fall in love with her. "You don't need to ask me about it," She continued. "It's your choice."_

"_But, you're my best friend."_

_Raven looked up, and so did Robin._

"_Robin…look…" Raven looked at him, her voice sounded impatient. The answer was simple yet so complicated. It wasn't exactly what she had wanted to say, but there was no turning back now. "I don't know if you noticed, but there's nothing I can say or do to make you not like Starfire. It doesn't really matter that I'm your best friend 'cause it's still your choice."_

_Robin fell silent._

"_Look, I really don't want to ruin the moment here. I mean, we both got what we wanted for Christmas, so…I think you should be with the person you really want to be with. It's Christmas, Robin." She smiled…a fake one, though she hoped Robin didn't see through that, too. Since he had done it oh so often now._

"_Thanks, Rae." He leaned over to hug his best friend. _

_She returned the hug, and for a second, got lost in the moment. _

_Her own words echoed in her head. _

I think you should be with the person you really want to be with.

…_even for just a moment._

_Robin loosened his grip then walked away toward Starfire's room excitedly._

_END FLASHBACK_

000

She closed her eyes, and tears began to fall down her pale cheeks.

Through the years, She had hoped and prayed every night that some day, he would come back and realize that the person he could really trust, the person he could love and the person who loved him back was right in front of him all along.

It hurt that she knew that would never happen. It hurt that she knew she was praying for some sort of miracle. It hurt that she knew she could never be trusted. But most of all, it hurt because through the years, the only thing she was waiting for was the day when she would come to realize that there's actually nothing to wait for, that there really was no hope.

She felt disgusted at the sarcasm of the music box. The Lark. The joke, the silly game. That was all there is.

Her head began to rest unconsciously on her arm, and her eyes started to wear out. The tears were still streaming down her cheeks, but she was no longer sobbing, but sleeping peacefully.

The faint sound of the music box still echoed through her dark room, but she couldn't hear it anymore.

She had finally fallen asleep, the music box, being her lullaby, and her tears being her only companions.

**Author's Note:** Inspired and will continue to write!


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:** This is about Robin's wedding day… so here goes nothing!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Teen Titans.

Raven Roth, now at the age of 23, passed through the long walkway between the crowds. She could feel the eyes on her, boring into her very soul. She dared not breathe, feeling the purple dress tighten around her waist, all of a sudden. She could feel the scratchy fabric around her shoulders and down her thighs, and the pain on the toes of her feet, the straps of her sandals digging deeper into her skin as the high heels grazed through the red rug. The pull of her hair on the tight ponytail was hurting her temples, and the curl around the bottom of her long, purple hair was scratching her bare back as she walked. She wished so badly that the thorns in the white roses, that she held in her hands, would scratch her as she grasped them tighter, their petals and stems scraping the palm of her hand.

She could feel the smiling faces fade into frowns and the cheerful compliments turn into whispers.

She would hear, every now and then, the people talking about who she was, what she was.

"…she's the demon…"

She caught a few words from the audience, and then she drained out the others. She carried on walking, regardless of what she had heard.

She was inches away from the altar, when she stared up in front of her.

In front of her was her leader, a smile on his face as he watched his bride enter the aisle from the open doors, and beside him was his best man, the half-robot, and the ring-bearer, the changeling…they were all looking at the girl...woman who was walking down the isle. How she wished that she was the one entering the church right now.

All eyes were on the Tamaranean princess. Her long, red hair was up in a tight bun, with a veil down her head, held together by a crown. Her chest was bare, and the long dress wrapped around her bust and down to her feet, extending behind her to form a long train, carried by two small children. Beads, the shades of orange and purple, were hand crafted onto the dress, as if it were made by angels. The dress looked as if it were made of the finest silk in the universe. Maybe it was…she was, after all, a princess. She deserved the best of the best.

She stood there, watching the bride walk down the aisle. The frowns now became smiles, and the whispers all died down.

She knew that through the masked eyes, the boy wonder's eyes were eyeing his wife-to-be very intently.

"She looks beautiful." She heard him whisper through the crowd's murmurs. How she wished on everything she had to have someone, anyone, say that about her.

When every single birthday, she dressed up in long, beautiful dresses, hoping that her parents, or the elders from Azarath would tell her she looked beautiful, even though she wasn't, just to make her feel better. She gave this up ten years ago, and instead, she hid her face from the world under a blue hood, and her body in a long cloak. If she didn't feel beautiful, then she didn't' want to be seen at all.

The music ended and the red-headed titan now stood beside her, in front of her groom, and they began saying their vows as they kneeled in front of the altar.

They looked like the perfect couple. She loved him, and he loved her. A demon was merely a third wheel, the backup plan. But they really didn't need a backup plan… they loved each other, just as much as she loved him.

"I do…" proclaimed the princess, lifting her head to face her groom.

"I do…" proclaimed the leader, lifting his head to face his bride.

They stood up.

He began lifting the veil off her face, revealing an even more beautiful woman. The makeup on her face was very light which gave way to her extravagant features. Her tan skin, and high nose accentuated her round, green eyes and thin lips.

He lifted a hand to brush away the curl, and cupped her face, pulling her to a soft kiss…the authentication of the wedding.

Raven felt her heart sink into her stomach when their lips met, hoping to taste the kiss that she had longed for many years. She grind her teeth, then bit her lip, sinking it deeper, trying to stop herself from stopping everything…all of this from continuing.

His hand crept to the side of her waist as they pulled apart.

They released two white doves which flew above them, as if bowing their head to the princess, then flew out of the door.

The crowd exploded into applause and congratulations, as the newlyweds walked back down the aisle.

She could feel him slipping out of her hands with every step he took away from her. She clenched her hands into tight fists, beating the urge to come run after him and pull him back to take the kiss that she had wanted for so long…the one that was hers in the first place…

_000_

_FLASHBACK_

_Everyone else had taken into dancing, except for Robin and Raven, who were drinking shots in the table. Although, not as much as Speedy, who was in the other table._

_Starfire was dancing with Aqualad, Cyborg with Bee, and Beastboy with…um… Mas y Menos._

_A slow music started to play, and everyone inched closer together, to dance more gracefully._

"_Rae, you wanna dance?" he asked, standing up to hold out his hand for her._

_She had no choice other than to take his hand. It would be rude not to. She stood up and danced with him._

_She draped her arms around his shoulders, as he placed his hands on her waist. She could feel the friction, between his hands and her skin. _

_For some reason, they both felt uneasy, like there was something there. Infatuation, perhaps? _

_They shook it away, not wanting to do something they would both be regretting…something that could ruin their friendship. _

_They were both beating the urge to inch closer and pull each other into a kiss. They both knew that something like that could break a friendship, a bond that took so long to make, especially with someone who's a half-demon, and someone who's obsessed with a villain named Slade. Something like that would take years of spending time together, years of gaining and giving both respect and trust. To think that a kiss could destroy all that._

_Raven suddenly found her head resting on Robin's shoulder, as if she was unaware that she had done so. She could feel her heart beating loudly against her chest, and she hoped that he couldn't feel it._

_She felt his heavy breath on her neck, then felt herself follow his stealthy movement. _

_They pulled away from each other to take a minute to stare into each other's eyes. Although Raven really couldn't see, she knew that he had felt it, too._

_As they pulled closer, she let her hand fall into his, as his hand reached up to her neck, to pull her closer._

_She closed her eyes, draining out everything around her. She couldn't breathe, she didn't think, she just pulled closer._

_She felt a soft brush of lips on her own, for about a millisecond, when something had interrupted._

"_Will you guys hic just get it hic over with!" an arm lay on Robin's shoulder, then a head rested on Raven's. "Just hic kiss her! hic is that so hic hard to do?" _

_Raven turned to see a mass of red hair on her shoulder. "Speedy…I think you've got too much to drink." Robin said, pulling him away from Raven's shoulder. _

_He lifted his arm to support him. "We…uh…better get him back to the tower."_

"_Yeah," she replied, lifting her hood to cover her face. _

_END FLASHBACK_

000

Robin looked back to call his teammates. "Come over here, guys!"

The three of them hurried to stand beside the couple in the picture. Raven, however, preferred to stay at the side.

After the press had taken all the pictures, Robin stepped away from his new wife, and back to his best friend.

"Rae," he took her hands. She could feel the pain as his skin connected with hers. It felt so right, yet so wrong. "Thank you…"

"For what? This was your choice…I had nothing to do with it." She replied, still holding back the tears.

"Rae, you're my best friend…"

How she had heard those words so often before. Hopefully, even the life after this day…although it was less likely to happen.

"I know, but it's all going to be different, now. You'll have a life of your own with…Starfire," she couldn't bear to speak the name. "And I'd have a lonely life on my own… maybe find the person for me as well. But that's not going to happen some time soon."

Robin smiled, then pulled her to a hug. It was so real that it was painful. It was bad enough knowing that the one she loved has married someone else, and it's even worse to have the him take you into his arms and hug you like it was the last time you would see each other.

She had remembered it so well. That fateful Christmas night when she had let him go, and all she was left with were her tears and many regrets of having done so.

It was like déjà vu. That one particular moment in her life, the saddest moment of her life, repeating again.

She could feel the tears coming back again, just as they had that night, more than five years ago.

"I really don't want to ruin the moment here. I mean, we both have new lives now, so…I think you should be with the person you really want to be with. It's your wedding day, Robin." The words that she had spoken before, she repeated again, just for the sake of doing so. For the last time.

"Thanks Rae," he hugged her again, and then he walked away back into the car, disappearing into the crowd.

She reached behind her to pull her hood, but it wasn't there. Now, she was bare, with nothing to hide under. She lifted her hand to shade her face, then bit her lip to hold back more tears. For the moment, she could hide behind this mask. The one that said "I'm happy for him" and "I'm ready to move on".

**Author's Note:** I am still inspired, although I MAY NOT continue this. So, for the moment, I'll leave you guys with this chapter. This was meant to be in a separate fic, but it turned out so horribly similar to Music Box, so I made it a continuation instead.

PLEASE REVIEW!

If I get enough, I **_MAY_** make a new chapter for this. No assurances.


End file.
